That's the only way to explain the comments that came flying out of his mouth over the weekend:

"They will break the single-season win record [of 72]," Jeff Van Gundy said. "And I think they have a legit shot at the Lakers' 33-game [winning] streak [in 1971-72], as well. And only the Lakers have even a remote shot at beating them in a playoff series. They will never lose two games in a row this year. They have put together a much better roster than anybody could ever have expected," Van Gundy added. "There is now no good way to defend them. They are unguardable. They are indefensible. They are just too good and have added so much shooting and are so versatile that they will score at will. And with Erik Spoelstra coaching, they will be in the top three defensive teams in the league, as well. The other 29 teams better hope the lockout gets moved up a year."

Just so we're clear, here are some of the numbers that Miami will have to improve upon in order to top the '95-'96 Bulls:

They only started the season 39-3, and went from November 5, 1971 until January 7, 1972 without losing a game. Thirty-three wins. In a row.

So there you go Miami Heat. A few numbers to shoot for.

And in case you're wondering, the most wins for a team that didn't win the NBA Championship in a season was 68 by the 1972-1973 Boston Celtics (68-14). Some other teams that won a ton of games and didn't win the whole pie include the 2006-2007 Dallas Mavericks (67-15) and the 2008-2009 Cleveland Cavaliers (66-16) led by none other than LeBron James.

I know the season doesn't start until October and teams haven't quite finished all of their roster moves and what not...but damnit, I can't help myself. This might be the most anticipated season in the history of the league. This is my personal opinion of how the league stacks up as of this exact moment in time. Remember, the season hasn't started yet, so expect this list to change. And don't expect much more detail in subsequent lists until the season starts.

The contenders (number in parenthesis indicate ranking within conference):

1. Los Angeles Lakers (1)If you want the Larry O'Brien trophy, you'll have to rip it out of the hands of Kobe, Pau, Lamar, Ron-Ron, Fish and the rest of the crew. The best team in the NBA only got better. Bye bye Jordan Farmar, Josh Powell, DJ Mbenga, and Adam Morrison. Hello Steve Blake, Matt Barnes and Theo Ratliff. Add the winning-est coach in the history of North American pro sports and you've got all the makings of another championship for Laker Nation.

2. Boston Celtics (1)The Celtics were a knee injury and one quarter of basketball away from their 18th trophy. The perimeter defense took a step back with the departure of Tony Allen, but their frontline is massive: Kendrick Perkins (when he comes back from his knee injury), Shaquille O'Neal, are Jermaine O'Neal the three centers on the roster. Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen are another year older so hopefully for Celtics fans they'll be able to remain healthy for another stretch run in the playoffs. And Rondo is just scratching the surface. Yikes.

3. Orlando Magic (2)They looked like the most dangerous team in the NBA after the first two rounds of the playoffs and then they got smacked in the face by Boston. It's now or never for Orlando as they didn't make any significant additions to their team outside of Chris Duhon and Quentin Richardson. So yeah...I hope the work that Dwight Howard has put in with Hakeem Olajuwon pays massive dividends or the Magic reign atop the Southeast Division is over.

4. Miami Heat (3)And your 2010-2011 NBA Champions, the Miami...wait...you mean they actally have to PLAY games BEFORE being crowned? OK, they may not be NBA Champions but they were definitely the champions of the 2010 Free Agency. It doesn't matter how it happened, the fact remains that there should be no excuse now for LeBron James at this point. Dwyane Wade now has all the help he needs. Chris Bosh gets to actually play on TV on a regular basis for the first time in his career. And Pat Riley gets to tell all the other NBA executives to suck it. I'm not giving them the East crown yet, but they have the best opportunity to snatch it. You know...because they have two of the five best players in the league on their team and another guy who is a top 20 player. I believe that the NBA crown will probably elude them this season due to the spare parts surrounding the prime talent. But we'll see.

5. Oklahoma City Thunder (2)Other than the Boston Celtics, no team played harder against the Lakers in the playoffs than the Oklahoma City Thunder. I watched them last year as they quickly rose through the ranks of the rough and tumble Western Conference en route to a 50-win season. These guys are legit. Kevin Durant is only 21. He led the league in scoring at over 30 points per game. Kevin Durant is only 21. Russell Westbrook is one of the best young point guards in the league. The rest of the team is brimming with talent. Did I mention that Kevin Durant is only 21?

6. Chicago Bulls (4)In terms of the big guns of free agency, they struck out. But they probably never had a real shot at them anyways. However, the additions that the Bulls made to the team were all very good and sound moves. I expect big things from Chicago this season. While it will be an uphill battle against the likes of Boston, Orlando and Miami, this team will definitely be up to the fight. Joakim Noah should only improve after averaging a double double last year, Carlos Boozer is a legitimate 20-10 guy, Luol Deng gives solid production in the 17-8 range, and Derrick Rose continues to improve on his outside shooting. Hopefully he improves on getting to the free throw line. The main hole the Bulls have is at shooting guard; defensively, Ronnie Brewer is solid but his offense leaves much to be desired.

7. San Antonio Spurs (3)Yes, the Spurs are getting older but they continue to make the right personnel moves. By finally signing Tiago Splitter, the Spurs have a talented big man that help Tim Duncan down low. This team was much better than their 7 seed last year indicated, and they showed as much by blowing the doors off the Dallas Mavericks. Look for them to continue to maintain a strong presence among the top teams in the West.

8. Dallas Mavericks (4)Dallas is stuck in quicksand. They nabbed the number 2 seed last year and got spanked by the 7 seeded Spurs. Like I mentioned, the Spurs weren't your average 7 seed, but they dispatched the Mavericks rather easily. Mark Cuban can't be pleased at his team's lack of progress since making the Finals in 2006. They didn't do much this offseason in terms of adding talent, outside of getting Tyson Chandler. Their best bet is to try to make some trades during the season because the roster as currently constructed will not make it out of the West, let alone win an NBA championship.

9. Denver Nuggets (5)Denver should have been the second best team in the West last season. They looked like legitimate contenders until George Karl had to leave the sidelines to battle cancer. Their lack of focus has doomed them time and again. They certainly have the talent to be an elite team, but until they get a handle on the mental aspect of the game they will continue to take fishing trips instead of planning championship parades. Oh, and Carmelo Anthony is going to be an unrestricted free agent next summer.

10. Portland Trailblazers (6)Injuries hammered this ball club all season long. Knees were exploding left and right (Roy, Oden, Pryzbilla), shoulders were falling apart (Batum)...it was a mess. Hopefully, they can stay healthy and if they can, then they will be a very dangerous team. They'll be making some roster moves as they look to unload an unhappy Rudy Fernandez, but even if they stay with what they have the team is still very strong.

11. Milwaukee Bucks (5)Look for the Bucks to be battling the Bulls for the Central Division crown that will be changing hands after the departure of LeBron James from Cleveland. Milwaukee made some solid moves in the offseason; they're pretty stacked that the power forward position. They also added a proven scorer in Corey Maggette who can create his own shot and get to the free throw line. Andrew Bogut will hopefully be fully healthy to start the season and Brandon Jennings will only improve after an impressive rookie campaign. I wonder what they'll do with Michael Redd...

12. Atlanta Hawks (6)Atlanta did nothing to improve, point blank. They overpaid Joe Johnson which will have a negative impact financially on the future of the team and their free agent acquisitions were Josh Powell and Jason Collins. If they had a chance at joining the NBA's elite, that window is closed.

13. Houston Rockets (7)The Rockets have heart, no question about it. With the loss of Yao last season and the departure of Artest, not to mention the soap opera drama provided by She-Mac, the Rockets could have easily coasted through the season. They fought hard and finished 9th in the West. She-Mac is gone now, and Ron-Ron won a ring in LA but the question remains - is Yao healthy? If he is, then the Rockets will be in the thick of things out West. If not, then be on the lookout for frustrated Houstonians.

14. Utah Jazz (8)Deron Williams can't be happy right now. Half of his team went to go play for the Bulls, including Utah's second best player in Carlos Boozer. The Jazz were able to turn that negative into a positive by getting Al Jefferson from the Minnesota Pointguards. While I don't doubt that a Jerry Sloan coached team will play hard every night, I do doubt that we'll be seeing very much of them in the post season.

15. New York Knicks (7)Rejoice Knickerbocker fans; in all likelihood your team should be back in the playoffs for the first time since OJ was rollin' with AC. Just kidding, it hasn't been that long. But still, the Knicks made some pretty good additions to their team that should put them in the Eastern playoff picture. Amar'e Stoudamire, Anthony Randolph and Kelenna Azubuike will team up with Danilo Gallinari to give Knicks fans a reason to cheer. After Eddy Curry's contract falls off the books next summer, they'll have plenty of cap space to attempt to lure Carmelo Anthony to NYC. Wait 'til next year, Knicks fans...wait 'til next year.

16. Cleveland Cavaliers (8)Unbelievably, I think the Cavs can still sneak into the playoffs. I'm probably giving the LeBron's former supporting cast too much credit, but the talent dropoff in the East is so great after the Knicks that I think the Cavs can get in there. Byron Scott has a big project on his hands, but I think they can have this bit of success in spite of #23 #6. Dan Gilbert is crazy though.

The first ones to the lake and to the lottery:

17. Memphis Grizzlies (9)Can be a good team as they showed in spurts last season, but not enough to get them over the hump and into the playoffs. Unless the wheels completely fall off in Portland, Utah and Houston.

18. Phoenix Suns (10)The loss of Amar'e is going to hurt, but keep an eye on the Suns. Maybe, just maybe they can fight it out and sneak in the playoffs. Steve Nash deserves better.

19. New Orleans Hornets (11)They're going no where fast. Chris Paul kicked up dust a few weeks ago with passive-aggressive trade demands, but that noise has quieted a bit. The countdown has begun on his departure from New Orleans and with him, pro basketball in Louisiana.

20. Charlotte Bobcats (9)They just stood still. They lost Raymond Felton and replaced Tyson Chandler with Erick Dampier. So I guess they actually moved backwards. Sorry, MJ.

21. Indiana Pacers (10)They're not good and they don't suck royally. They're just kind of...there. Lance Stephenson got rave reviews in the summer league though, so there's that.

23. Philadelphia 76ers (11)Welcome to the NBA, Evan Turner, where you'll lose more games in your rookie year than you've ever lost in your entire life.

24. Sacramento Kings (13)The Kings actually have the potential to be better than this spot on the list. Not much better, but they should improve from last season. Tyreke Evans is the truth and they got a steal in Demarcus Cousins. Hopefully he lives up to his potential and doesn't engage in foolishness.

25. Golden State Warriors (14)They'll score a lot of points and never play defense. And lose. A lot.

26. Detroit Pistons (12)I have no idea what's going on in Detroit now. They had the Central Divison and a spot in the East Finals on lock for so long that it's strange to see them sink to such depths. Oh well.

27. Washington Wizards (13)John Wall will give D.C. residents reason to smile and JaVale McGee is going to be making a lot of highlights due to his high flying talents. Keep an eye on the contract of Gilbert Arenas...he might become a Maverick before the season is over for all I know.

28. New Jersey Nets (14)Every free agent told the Nets "nyet." Avery Johnson will have this team playing hard, but don't expect too much from these guys. But it wouldn't surprise me if it was them in the last playoff spot and Cleveland in this spot. Sorry, khal.

29. Toronto Raptors (15)They will be terrible. NBA basketball in Canada might be dead at this point.

30. Minnesota Timberwolves (15)David Kahn loves point guards and apparently loves Darko Milic. They will win less than 18 games this season.